3.5 years and fifty pounds later

So for those of you who don't know this, I've been working hard to change my body and get healthy since my senior year in college. I'd say I started changing my outlook around August 2005. What happened was the craziness of college completely got to me. One day I stepped on the scale and almost had a heart attack when I saw how much I weighed. And though I tried to hide it in the clothes I wore, I knew I definitely needed to lose weight. It's strange how the weight just kind of creeps up on you, and bad habits form, including not excercising because I was "too busy" and just waaaaay overeating. It's amazing how easy it is to overeat. I literally had to count calories the first month or two I started making changes, because I was just eating so much extra and I didn't even realize it. In October 2006, I really started taking things seriously when I joined the gym at Fox Chase Cancer Center. I received a lot of support from my friend and sort of trainer, Matt. Not to mention receieving support and feedback from other members, such as my friend Loretta, and the women of my aerobics class. Once I joined the gym, I really started changing physically. It was so awesome! Every 3 months, I would keep motivated by having Matt take all my measurements and run me through some fitness tests, so I could see my progress and how I changed. It was amazing! I loved seeing myself improve.

I was so sad to leave the FCCC gym when I got my new job at Lankenau, but I had found another great gym right by my house- the Ardmore location Philadelphia Sports Club. It fit me perfectly and I felt very comfortable there. I've also made some new friends, which makes going more fun and also keeps me accountable.

This all leads up to this past Wednesday. I had to go to the doctor for a checkup, and the nurse weighed me. I hadn't weighed myself in quite a long time, I really do believe it's just a number, and I was seeing results physically so didn't care about the number on the scale. But it was awesome when the nurse said I weighed 133 lbs!! I was ecstatic! I literally can't remember when I weighed that little- 8th or 9th grade probably. I know I weighed more than that in 10th grade. The best part is, being 133 lbs means that I have lost FIFTY pounds since I was my heaviest. Yes folks, I had once weighed 183 lbs in college. I didn't think I looked it back then, but now that I look back on pictures of myself during that time, I can definitely see it. It's so great to know that all my hard work has paid off!

And so lastly, I want to encourage anyone reading this to start today and work on changing your body for the better as well. It's hard work, definitely, but it pays off in so many ways. Cheers for good health! :)